Group items tagged

Long but very useful.

Although electronic waste can be harmful to people and the environment, banning it outright can have negative impacts, too.

Environmental impact of data storage.

Urgent action is needed to tackle the "mountains" of e-waste building up in developing nations, says a UN report. Good short summary of the problem. Global perspective.

A mini-site on e-waste in Ghana. Includes video, interactive e-waste map, FAQ, image gallery, and discussion. The video (20 mins) can be watched online (as of Feb 2010).

If you want to keep up to date with what's going on in the world of green ICT, take a look at The Green IT Review. This blog covers significant industry-related news, and highlights issues and trends, with a focus not so much on what happened today, but what it means for tomorrow. The Green IT Review is read by people in more than 75 countries across the globe, with a significant number of registered readers receiving news by email every day. News and comment from the site is reproduced in a number of web sites and publications in North America, Canada, Europe and Australia.

Two downloadable reports on this page Towards Green ICT Strategies Measuring the Relationship Between ICT and the Environment

Video: Greening ICT case study QuickTime (Duration: 8.05) Greening ICT case study from Queen Margaret University. Good overview of the problems and solutions.

A Greenpeace production which includes information about hazardous materials in computers. Statistics and diagrams may be useful.

A nice interactive diagram of a computer which displays the chemicals in each component and their effects on the human body.

Simple but effective site - it gives electronics manufacturers a rank out of 10 for their environmental policies, including take-back policies and use of toxic chemicals. Updated often, and allows you to track whether manufacturers have risen or fallen in the rankings. Last updated January 2010. (the links on the left of the page contain lots of useful information and multimedia about e-waste too).

Photo essay about the disposal of e-waste in Pakistan. Very powerful images of the pollution being caused. It also shows individual e-waste workers, giving a more personal insight than some other articles.

Photo essay about e-waste in Ghana. Audio is quite interesting and there are some powerful images of the e-waste "recycling" process. Also discusses the wider issue of the poverty that drives many of these adults and children to work in these conditions.

Photo essay showing how some UK councils are failing to ensure that e-waste is recycled or properly disposed of as required by the WEEE. The photo essay tracks a container from the UK to West Africa.

Good overview. about 4 minutes Recycling old electronics keeps toxic components from contaminating the environment. Recycled improperly, however, they could end up polluting not only your area but also other countries.

September 2007 Every year, 35 million tonnes of electronic waste is exported to China to be scrapped. There the rubbish is broken down by hand, poisoning workers and polluting the environment. "Smoke from the computers is too strong to breathe", complains one disposal worker. "I feel dizzy and can't see any more". Many employees at the electronic disposal plant suffer from respiratory illness or skin diseases. They work for ten hours a day, with no protection from the hazardous chemicals.

Very classy video done by Basel Action Network. Lots of specifics and good visuals.